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Be careful what you wish for…

With 65 days of temperatures over 100 degrees and a disaster-level drought, we have been wishing and praying and yes, dancing, for rain.

We got it.

Imagine my surprise when I went to put out the trash last night at 7:15 and it started to sprinkle…then rain…then blow. I got inside just as walls of water began coming down sideways.

Moments earlier, the umbrella in the photo above was upright. It was really scary as I watched chairs and tables scoot and fly in the back yard. And then the lights went out!

Thanks goodness I am a candle fanatic. I’d planned on going to bed early to keep adjusting to the new school-year schedule, but with no light and no air conditioning, there wasn’t much else to do. I did discover that my iphone makes a great flashlight, though.

Things are back to normal this morning. The power was restored around midnight and the air came back on.

And we got .24 inches of rain.

Yeah!

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:40-06:00August 26th, 2009|Blog, rain, Sharing Nature's Garden, storm, weather|0 Comments

Dry and drier…

I wish this were the sight outside my window.

But it’s not.

And it hasn’t been for quite a while.

Tomorrow we start severe water restrictions — we will only be allowed to water with irrigation/sprinklers, etc. ONCE a week, from midnight to 10 am. Even numbered houses on Sunday night — that’s us.

You can water by hand any time, so I could, theoretically, stand outside in the cooler hours of the morning and evening (relatively cooler – 76 this morning the coolest temp of the day) and do nothing but water for hours on end by hand.

I can’t do that, and I can’t let everything die. And I can’t break the restrictions because our lakes are literally going dry.

We are predicted to feel the effects of El Nino this fall and winter, with higher than average rainfall forecast for us. Starting in November. November.

So, for now, I will spot hand water things that look like they are losing that battle – trees and large shrubs get first priority. I noticed a beautiful 9 year-old oak tree in severe stress today with yellowing leaves falling to the ground.

I will also keep collecting extra water in buckets in the shower. Did you know, 1 shower’s worth of water – 2 large buckets — can water most of the pots in the back patio area? I know it sounds crazy, but imagine how much water is wasted while you wait for it to warm up so you can get in.

And, I will keep watering the birds and the squirrels and insects and deer who are all starving and dying of thirst.

And my daughter and I will keep doing silly little rain dances in the yard when we see scattered clouds in the sky.

It can’t hurt, right?!

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:42:41-05:00August 23rd, 2009|Blog, rain, Sharing Nature's Garden, water restrictions|0 Comments

No chicken little here!

The sky is falling, the sky is falling…
A cool wind blew through just a few minutes ago and then drops of water began falling from the sky.

Ahhhh….

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:44:31-05:00July 30th, 2009|Blog, drought, rain, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

“It’s raining, it’s pouring…”

Well, let’s not get carried away, shall we?

But it IS raining. A slow, steady, very light rain. And has been for a few hours. .05 I think. That may not seem like much, but it’s manna from heaven for us here.

And while there was no old man snoring here, I did close my eyes for a few minutes after taking Kallie to art camp and the sound of the rain on the roof lulled me into a quickie nap!

Just had to show you my beautiful Anniversary bouquet from my sweetie. Isn’t it awesome? AND he came home from the grocery store with several bunches of flowers, too. Wow.
And these are the formerly-beautiful Sedums — Autumn Joy — that WERE going in the back bed. That is until I left them outside the garage in my “holding area” where my precious little deer decided they were another treat I’d put out for her along with the birdseed! Ooops! I think they will survive and I’ll plant them anyway — but INSIDE the fence!

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:44:33-05:00June 30th, 2009|anniversary, Blog, rain, sedum, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

Run, take cover, wet stuff is coming from the sky!

Honestly, I didn’t think it was EVER going to rain again here in Austin. It’s been such a long, hot-hot drought this summer. Even worse than usual.

But today, after grey skies all day, it finally opened up and showered down upon us. We got a quarter of an inch in about 20 minutes, and the forecast is calling for a 70% chance of rain tomorrow, as well. And boy, do we need it.
When it was raining hard, I just had to get a shot of the rain gauge. We ended at .24 before the sun came back out and the rain stopped.
And then I set about plating some dinner from the yummy casseroles that my dear husband made for us this weekend while I was in bed. Being that it was a few minutes before 5:00, both dogs had taken their posts in front of the stove to make sure not to miss a stray morsel — and to remind me that it was time for THEM to be fed. They start lobbying at about 4:30 and are relentless.

So, the good news is that I don’t have to water pots or birdbaths or deer water bowls now. And maybe if you all cross your fingers, I won’t have to do it tomorrow, either!

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:45:07-05:00October 14th, 2008|Blog, dogs, rain, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

Cause and effect…

I walked all around my garden beds this morning, inspecting the cause and effect of the recent rains. So many things are just jumping up and down in the garden, saying, “look at ME, look at ME!”

So I thought I’d share my observations with you today.

Fellow Austin garden blogger Lori, of The Gardener of Good and Evil, just posted lovely photos of all her blooming Datura plants. She has six of them and I can’t imagine how huge they must be.

The recent rains have brought dozens of buds to my two plants (one planted, one volunteer), so I thought I would share the promise of blooms.

This is a Mealy Blue Sage that has been sad and pasty-colored all through this hot summer, bu today it is a vibrant blue-purple color. It clearly likes temperatures that are only in the 90s and it loves the rain.

The Verbena is always more colorful after a nice rain.
The trailing Lantana and the Blackfoot Daisy are checking out each other’s neighborhoods!
This Cape Honeysuckle that I insist on keeping in a pot for orange on the deck (which isn’t really the best way to try to grow it!) LOVES the rain and just explodes with color afterward.
This is my mutant Brugmansia – German Double Pink. I can only report that from the order I placed, since I have yet to see it bloom and some critter has been EATING the leaves all the way up the stem. I hope it survives. I haven’t seen anyone on it.